Chapter 147 New challenge
“First of all I'm not your darling. Secondly, I'm sick and tired of your bullshit.”
Then, Alex let out a dry chuckle, but there was no humor in it.
“Oh, you expected me to be shivering on hearing your voice?” he said coolly. “Well, I’ve got bad news for you.”
There was a brief pause on the line.
“Your case is already with the police,” Alex continued, his voice sharp and controlled. “You’ll be caught soon. So get ready, because when that happens,” His tone dropped dangerously.
“You’ll deal with the consequences of your action. Oh, I hope you already know, I have one of your watch dogs in my custody now.”
And before Mac could respond,
Alex ended the call.
The room fell silent again, but the tension lingered.
Alex’s hand tightened slightly around the phone, his jaw clenched as anger simmered just beneath the surface.
Beside him, Lucas shifted closer, watching him with something close to admiration.
Then he chortled, “You’re awesome,” he muttered, his voice soft but impressed. “Now you’ve given him something to meditate on.”
He wrapped his arms around Alex’s neck. Then placed a kiss on his cheek before pulling him into a tight embrace.
Alex let out a slow breath, one hand coming up to hold Lucas against him. He tried to relax into the warmth, but his heart was still racing. It was pounding hard against his chest because deep down, he knew this was far from over.
Unknown to them, as the line went dead on the other end, the tension in the room shifted.
Mac lowered his phone slowly, his expression unreadable, but his accomplice was already moving.
“Wait,” she said sharply. Without another word, she grabbed her own phone and dialed a number quickly, her fingers tapping impatiently against the surface as it rang.
Mac watched her, brows slightly drawn. “Who are you calling?”
She didn’t answer. The call connected.
“Hello?” a voice came through the line. It sounded casual.
“James,” she said immediately, her tone controlled but urgent. “Where are you?”
“At my hotel room, of course,” James replied without hesitation. “Why?”
Her eyes flicked briefly to Mac before she continued. “Were you intercepted by Alex’s men before?"
There was a short pause, then a confused scoff.
“Not at all,” James said. “I haven’t even stepped out since morning. Mac told me to stay put, remember?”
The accomplice’s shoulders eased slightly, though her face remained composed. “Good,” she said. “Stay there. Don’t go anywhere yet.”
“Alright,” James replied, clearly puzzled.
She ended the call. For a second, silence filled the room again. Then she looked at Mac.
“It’s not James,” she said. “He’s been in his hotel room the whole time.”
Mac’s eyes narrowed slightly, processing that. “So either…” she continued, “Alex caught the wrong person…”
“Or,” she added, a faint edge creeping into her voice, “he was bluffing.”
A little silence, then Mac gave out a low amused chuckle. “That’s good,” he said, leaning back slightly, a smirk forming on his lips. “Very good.”
The tension that had briefly crept into him dissolved, replaced by something darker, but confidence was still incomplete.
“Looks like our dear Alex is trying a little too hard,” he added.
His accomplice didn’t smile. He knew if Alex was bluffing, it meant one thing. He was getting desperate. And desperate people,
made dangerous moves.
For a moment, Mac just sat there, phone still in his hand, expression frozen, not in anger but something far less familiar. He was really surprised at Alex’s earlier outburst.
Slowly, he put the phone away, staring at the dark screen like it had just betrayed him.
Across the room, his accomplice leaned against the table, arms folded, having heard every word from Alex clearly through the speaker.
Silence stretched between them.
Then Mac let out a short, disbelieving scoff. “Babe, did you hear everything he said?”
His accomplice didn’t answer immediately, her eyes narrowed slightly in thought before she nodded. “Yeah… I did.”
Mac ran a hand through his hair, pacing now. “Can you believe this?” he continued, agitation creeping into his voice. “Alex doesn't seem scared anymore. He wasn’t shaken. He was bold, too bold.”
He stopped, turning sharply to face her. “He sounded, what? Calm? Confident?” His jaw tightened. “That’s not how he sounded before.”
She straightened, pushing herself off the table. “Exactly, Hunter” she said, her tone more serious now. “He’s not scared anymore.”
Mac’s expression darkened.
“I don’t think he’ll ever leave Lucas,” she added, watching Hunter's reaction closely.
That landed hard.
“Damn it!” Mac snapped, his voice echoing as he slammed the phone onto the table. “This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.”
He started pacing again, faster this time, frustration radiating off him.
“I broke him once,” he muttered. “I know I did. So what changed, huh?”
His accomplice didn’t respond right away, her gaze thoughtful, calculating. Then she said, “Maybe you should call him again. Try to relax before doing that.” She suggested.
Mac stood still for a moment, jaw tight, thoughts racing. Then his accomplice stepped closer, her voice low but sharp.
“Just fucking call him again.”
Mac glanced at her. “I don't think I should…”
“Come on Hunter, just do it” she said, unfazed. “He’s getting too comfortable. Put the fear back in him. Remind him you are an untraceable Mac Hunter.”
Mac hesitated, then a slow, dangerous smile crept onto his lips. “You’re right.”
He grabbed his phone and dialed Alex’s number.
Back in the apartment, Alex’s phone buzzed against the bedside table again. He didn’t move.
It buzzed again. Still Alex ignored it. Lucas shifted beside him, glancing at the screen. “Alex…”
“Baby, I’m not picking it,” Alex muttered, his tone flat.
The buzzing stopped but a second later, a message came in.
Alex reached for the phone this time, his eyes scanning the screen.
The message said, “Alex, pick up your fucking phone or you will regret it.”
His heart thudded once and hard.
Then the phone rang again. The room felt smaller. Lucas watched him quietly now, sensing the shift.
Alex exhaled sharply and picked up.
“Fine,” he snapped instantly. “I’ve picked up. What the hell do you want from me, huh?”
A slow clap echoed faintly from the other end.
“Wow…” Mac’s voice dripped with mock admiration. “Bravo, bravo, Alex.”
Alex’s eyes hardened.
“So now you’ve grown wings?” Mac continued. “You run away from your house and suddenly you think you can scream at me?”
Alex leaned back slightly, his grip tightening on the phone but his voice steady. “Get to the point.”
Mac chuckled darkly. “For how long, Alex? Hm? For how long will you keep this up?” His tone sharpened. “How long will you stay away from your business?”
Agonizing pause.
“And how long,” he added, voice dropping, “will you keep hiding Lucas in some hotel?”
Lucas stiffened slightly at that, his gaze snapping to Alex.
But Alex laughed. A low, controlled chuckle. “Oh, so that’s why you called?” he said coolly. “To threaten me again?”
Mac went quiet.
“Not to worry,” Alex continued, his tone cutting now. “The police are already tracing your calls and messages. And for your information,” he added lazily, “you just interrupted my sleep.”
Mac’s breathing shifted—subtle, but there.
“I’m not afraid of whatever cheap trick you’re trying to pull,” Alex went on, each word deliberate. “So if you have nothing important to say,”
He paused and then finished,making it colder. “Stop wasting my precious time.”
Silence hung between them. It was heavy and tense. It was like a
challenge. And this time, Alex didn’t hang up immediately.
He waited.
Mac cut the call himself.
But one thing was clear now.
Whatever control Mac thought he had, was gradually slipping.